The presently disclosed embodiments pertain to a novel imaging member, namely, an electrostatic latent image generating member that can generate an electrostatic latent image digitally without using a raster output scanner (ROS) and photoreceptor, and perhaps also without charger.
In electrophotographic or electrophotographic printing, the charge retentive surface, typically known as a photoreceptor, is electrostatically charged, and then. exposed to a light pattern of an original image to selectively discharge the surface in accordance therewith. The resulting pattern of charged and discharged areas on the photoreceptor form an electrostatic charge pattern, known as a latent image, conforming to the original image. The latent image is developed by contacting it with a finely divided electrostatically attractable powder known as toner. Toner is held on the image areas by the electrostatic charge on the photoreceptor surface. Thus, a toner image is produced in conformity with a light image of the original being reproduced or printed. The toner image may then be transferred to a substrate or support member (e.g., paper) directly or through the use of an intermediate transfer member, and the image affixed thereto to form a permanent record of the image to be reproduced or printed. Subsequent to development, excess toner left on the charge retentive surface is cleaned from the surface. The process is useful for light lens copying from an original or printing electronically generated or stored originals such as with a ROS, where a charged surface may be imagewise discharged in a variety of ways.
Thus, it can be seen that current xerographic printing involves multiple steps, such as, charging the photoreceptor, developing the latent images, transferring and fusing the developed images, erasing and cleaning the photoreceptor. These multiple steps require many electromechanical components, which leads to more opportunities for system breakdowns or failures. Future trends in the industry are focusing on using machines that are smaller, faster, smarter, less costly and environmentally friendly. Thus, there is a need to re-design engine architecture to achieve machines that use less electromechanical components, such as for example, a printing apparatus with a new electrostatic latent image generating member which can generate electrostatic latent image digitally without using a ROS, a photoreceptor and may be without a charger.
Digitalization of the xerographic process has been proposed as a possible solution. However, many of the proposed designs still involved many components. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,100,909, hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, there was described an image-forming apparatus comprising high voltage thin film transistors (TFT) and capacitors. The electrostatic latent images are formed directly on the non-conducting imaging member by switching on the high voltage capacitors via the high voltage TFTs. However, the disadvantage to this design was that the apparatus required the use of high voltage capacitors to drive the backplane.
The present embodiments provide digitalization of the xerographic marking process in a manner that result in a smaller, smarter and more efficient machine.
Conventional photoreceptors are disclosed in the following patents, a number of which describe the presence of light scattering particles in the undercoat layers: Yu, U.S. Pat. No. 5,660,961; Yu, U.S. Pat. No. 5,215,839; and Katayama et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,958,638. The term “photoreceptor” or “photoconductor” is generally used interchangeably with the terms “imaging member.” The term “electrophotographic” includes “electrophotographic” and “xerographic.” The terms “charge transport molecule” are generally used interchangeably with the terms “hole transport molecule” or “electron transport molecules.”